Cubs' 108 Year-Old Fan Dies, ML Teams Dealing

By ESPN

A woman who waited 108 years to see another Cubs championship died only days after the team finally recaptured the World Series earlier this month against the Cleveland Indians.

Mabel Ball, born the same year the Cubs had previously won the World Series, died Tuesday in the Chicago suburb of Northbrook.

"The cruel irony, the almost unbelievable irony, is that the person who waits and waits and waits, after it happens, says, 'I've done what I've got to do, and I'm out of here,'" said her son Rich, 75, of Oak Park, Illinois. "It ain't funny, but it's funny."

Ball was interviewed by several Chicago news outlets during the Cubs' run in the World Series.

"We grew up with the Cubs on the radio, and mom was a fan, and her dad was a Cubs fan, which surprises me," said Mabel Ball's son Don, 72, also of Oak Park.

Though Mabel followed the Cubs on the radio, she went to only one game, on her 90th birthday, Rich Ball said.

Braves Agree to Deal With Colon

The Atlanta Braves are bulking up their rotation with a pair of 40-somethings.

On the heels of signing 42-year-old knuckleballer R.A. Dickey, the Braves have now reached agreement on a contract with Bartolo Colon, sources confirmed to ESPN. The one-year deal is for $12.5 million, a source told ESPN's Jim Bowden, and the agreement was first reported by MLB.com.

An official announcement is not expected until late next week.

Colon, 43, could become the all-time winningest Latin American-born pitcher next season. He has a career 232-162 record over 19 major league seasons. The win total ranks third all time among Latin American-born pitchers, trailing only Nicaraguan Dennis Martinez (245) and fellow Dominican Juan Marichal (243).

The last major league team to have two pitchers 42 or older start 10 or more games was the 1990 Texas Rangers, with Nolan Ryan and Charlie Hough.

Nationals Agree to Terms With Heisey

Chris Heisey has agreed to a $1.4 million, one-year deal to return to the Washington Nationals.

Agent Paul Cobbe confirmed the deal in an email to The Associated Press on Sunday.

A favorite of Nationals manager Dusty Baker, Heisey hit nine home runs in spot and pinch-hitting duties during the 2016 regular season. The 31-year-old hit a pinch-hit, two-run home run in Game 5 of the NL Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Heisey, a corner outfielder, has played six of his seven major league seasons for Baker, five with the Cincinnati Reds. He's a .242 hitter with 61 home runs and 173 RBIs in his career.

Mariners Acquire Valencia

The Seattle Mariners have acquired utility player Danny Valencia from the Oakland Athletics for minor league pitcher Paul Blackburn.

Valencia, 32, played four positions for Oakland last season and hit .287 with 17 home runs and 51 RBIs in 130 games.

Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto said Saturday that Valencia's ability to play first and third base and left and right field gives manager Scott Servais a "welcome level of flexibility."

Valencia also has played for Minnesota, Boston, Baltimore, Kansas City and Toronto. He's a career .321 hitter against left-handed pitching.

Blackburn, 22, was 9-5 with a 3.27 ERA in 26 games in Double-A last season. Blackburn was acquired by Seattle in July as part of a trade with the Chicago Cubs that sent Mike Montgomery to Chicago.